Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2010 11:32:34 -0400
Reply-To: Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Subject: Re: Leaking head nut
In-Reply-To: <y2i152e292b1004290823o16e4f48dp8f9ef2b8f859483c@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Roger, how do I know? Been There Done That. I feel your pain. Maybe
someone has a good used AMC head they can sell you.
Ken Wilford
John 3:16
www.vanagain.com
Roger VanTill wrote:
> And the winner is............Ken Wilford! I took a good look at that
> area and I can see the hairline crack. I'm f*cked! Due to unemployment
> and a future Zetec install I couldn't afford to get new heads. They
> looked fine and were only seeping at the gasket.
>
> Time to cry in my beer and figure out what's next.
>
> On Thu, Apr 29, 2010 at 8:08 AM, Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@comcast.net
> <mailto:kenwilfy@comcast.net>> wrote:
>
> Roger, if you reused your old heads then what you have is a
> hairline crack at the head nut. This is a common failure with the
> OE VW heads as they have a thin spot right there and can crack
> upon retorqueing. That is why I very, very rarely ever use them.
> I always use the AMC heads which are brand new, but also they are
> beefed up in this area to avoid this problem. Most of my
> customers come here from at least 2 to 3 hours away. I don't want
> them to have any problems because unlike a local shop, I just
> don't have the "luxury" of taking chances and having people come
> back. So I decided a long time ago that if a customer comes in
> with heads that have any cracks between the valves, and we are
> doing a head gasket replacement, I will always recommend new AMC
> heads. I have never had one single problem with them over the
> past 12 years of doing head replacements. Many happy Vanagons out
> there still purring down the road.
>
> Just my opinion.
>
>
> Ken Wilford
> John 3:16
> www.vanagain.com <http://www.vanagain.com>
>
>
> Roger VanTill wrote:
>
> I rebuilt my 2.1 this spring. Was very careful, read
> everything I could,
> watched Ben's videos, etc. Got the motor and new tranny
> installed. Filled
> the system with coolant this afternoon. It's sitting there,
> not started yet,
> unpressurized. I've got a coolant leak coming from one of the
> upper center
> head bolts on the driver side. Tears are still falling as I
> write this.
>
> Yes I sanded the bolts flat and cleaned up the mating surface
> on the head. I
> used the yellow goop that came with the gasket set.
>
> Should I just drain it, remove the leaking cap nut and reseal
> it? Do I trust
> the other 15?
>
> Looking for advice and a pat on the back to tell me it'll be
> alright.
>
>
>
>
|